degrees. the senate will not consider the bill during the lame duck sessionbutharryreidhassaid comprehensive immigration reform will be a priority. there is strong bipartisan support to create a new visa program poor's stem graduates but with american universities, i want to take the opportunity to thank senator warner who has consistently supported immigration and. as evidenced by his leadership 3217 sanibel introduced may 2012 see u.s. educated form for him to have a green card and stay in the country. >> now you have to have

years as senate majority leader. in the same span oftime,harryreidhasfaced 386. for most of our history, the filibuster was used very sparingly, but in recent years, what was rare has become routine. the exception has become the norm. everything is filibustered. every procedural step of the way, with paralyzing effect. the senate was meant to cool the process, not send it into a deep freeze. still, the democratic majority came into the upper chamber in 2007. the senates of the 110th, 111th, and the current 112th congress have witnessed the three highest total -- totals of filibusters ever recorded. a recent report found the current senate has passed a record low 2.8% of bills introduced. that is 66% decrease from the last republican majority in 2005 and 2006 and a 90% decrease from the high in 1955-1956. so the republicans argue in 2005 an exercise of the constitutional option under the current circumstances would be an act of restoration. an act of restoration. i cannot improve on that statement. we must return the senate to a time when every procedural step was not filibustere

at the bold, stark facts thatsinceharryreidbecamethe leader here, he's had to face 388 filibusters. and the last time the democrats were in the minority, we forced half as many, which i think even is too much. but half as many. so you have our majority leader facing twice as many as democrats led and it just has gotten out of hand. and, you know, you can stand up here and say it's a horrible thing to try and change the rules, but my test is abuse versus use. and i think if we can come together and avert any type of a -- some kind of showdown at ok corral, it's ridiculous. we don't need that. we can talk to each other as friends. we can figure out some of these commonsense reforms that we can do without having to get angry at one another. i -- i don't think it serves anyone's purpose if we're all angry at one another over this. so i wanted to respond to senator hatch on that. i also would ask unanimous consent that my whole statement about the nomination of jesus spurnell, be put in the record at the time we take up the judges later on in the day. the presiding officer: without obje